Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End could have looked very different if Amy Hennig’s original vision for the game had made it to release.
The Naughty Dog adventure eventually became one of the studio’s most celebrated games, with Nathan Drake joined by his long-lost brother Sam on a hunt for the legendary pirate treasure of Henry Avery. However, former Naughty Dog VFX artist Matt Radford says the original version of the story took Sam in a completely different direction.
According to Radford, Sam Drake was originally intended to be the villain.
Sam Was Supposed to Be Very Different
Speaking on the latest episode of Kiwi Talkz, Radford recalled working on Hennig’s version of Uncharted 4 early in his career.
He said the characters and story were substantially different from the version Naughty Dog eventually released.
“Amy’s vision for the game that I saw didn’t have the same characters, like Sam,” Radford explained. “Sam was in it, but he was not the same guy. It was very different. Sam was the villain.”
That would have dramatically changed the relationship at the heart of Uncharted 4. In the final game, Sam becomes Nathan’s partner and helps drive the story, even though his desperation leads him to manipulate his brother into helping him escape a dangerous situation involving Rafe Adler.
Sam ultimately remains an ally rather than becoming one of the game’s main antagonists.
Radford revealed that Hennig’s original project also featured a different actor for Sam.
According to the former Naughty Dog artist, the original actor had a connection to the studio and would regularly spend time there during development.
“The original guy they had cast, he was really nice, and he works with Amy still on the Star Wars game,” Radford said.
Troy Baker eventually took over the role for the final version of Uncharted 4, giving Sam the voice and performance that players now associate with the character.
The change was more than a simple recasting. Sam’s role in the story was also fundamentally rewritten.
Naughty Dog’s Final Version Took a Different Path
Hennig left Naughty Dog during the development of Uncharted 4, with Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmann subsequently taking over the project.
The final game moved away from the darker direction Radford remembers from Hennig’s version and instead built its story around Nathan’s relationship with Sam, his desire to return to a life of adventure and his eventual conflict with Rafe Adler.
Despite the differences, Radford was careful not to criticize the version that ultimately shipped.
He described Hennig’s original concept as something that “seemed cool,” but acknowledged that the released game was also an impressive achievement.
“Uncharted 4 was amazing,” Radford said, adding that he could not fault the vision that Straley and Druckmann ultimately delivered because he loved both the game and its story.
